Joseph Johnston Research Paper

3178 Words13 Pages
General Joseph E. Johnston AMU HIST 406 Professor Jennifer Thompson 24 June 2014 It is very difficult to compare Civil War Generals from the Union and the Confederacy. It is much easier to compare Generals who was on the same side, had the same resources and were in the same situations. Who used the resources better? Who motivated their Soldiers better? Who made the better decisions? Also you can look at which General earned the most respect from the opposing Generals. This paper is about General Joseph E. Johnston’s leadership style versus his Confederate counterparts and how despite superior knowledge, his indecisiveness and feuding with Jefferson Davis were insurmountable weaknesses. Joseph Eggleston Johnston was born on February 3, 1807 in Farmville, Virginia. His father was a Revolutionary War veteran and a respected judge. Johnston’s father was able to use his political connection to secure him an appointment at the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1825.[i]Joseph Johnston graduated from West point in 1829, ranking thirteenth of forty six. Upon graduating from West Point, Johnston was appointed to second lieutenant in the Fourth U.S. Artillery. [ii] The early career of Johnston included serving several years in the artillery on garrison duty. In 1832, Johnston served in a non-combat role in the Black Hawk War. He served on General Winfield Scott’s staff during the Second Seminole War in Florida. In 1837, Johnston became disappointed with garrison service and he resigned his commission from the Army in 1837. During the year that Johnston resigned, he was a civilian contractor on board of a U.S. Navy vessel in Florida, and was even wounded in the head by Seminoles while leading a survey party.[iii] When he rejoined the Army, Johnston was transferred to the topographical engineers in
Open Document